In the Lahore bomb blast today, at least seven people were wounded when an alleged bomb ripped through a rickshaw in Lahore’s Chauburji area on Friday. The bomb blast occurred at around 11:15 am and initial reports suggested it was a cylinder explosion.
The injured were shifted to a nearby hospital with two of the seven said to be in a critical condition. Bomb disposal squad officials said the rickshaw had close to two kilogrammes of explosive material, adding that ball bearings were also found near the crime scene
However, there has been no confirmation on the cause but a spokesperson for the Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department said a “terrorism angle” could not be ruled out at this stage.
The official said the injured include the rickshaw driver and one of the five victims was in critical condition. Other police officials said it could be a remote-controlled explosion as a suspicious device was found near the blast site.
They said there were also clear marks of ball bearings on the charred and mangled wreckage of the rickshaw. However, they said forensic teams and investigators are still working to ascertain the cause.
An eyewitness said he was dumbfounded by the impact of the explosion. “There were people standing close to the rickshaw. The blast ripped the clothes off their bodies … their shoes were also on fire,” he said
